THE MATERIAL CULTURE OF VIETNAMESE PEOPLE IN THE XVII - XIX CENTURIES THROUGH WESTERN EYES

Abstract

The Vietnamese culture is characterized by its diversity and brimming with the personality and lifestyle of the Vietnamese people. The Westerners who came to Viet Nam in the XVII - XIX centuries, through the process of living and interacting with the native people, kept records or travel diaries about the country, the people as well as the social life here. Typical authors included Crstophoro Borri, William Dampier, Alexandre De Rhodes, Jean - Baptiste Tavernier, John Barrow, Léopo Pallu, Charles-Édouard Hocquard and Reydellet. Their extensive and succinct notes about the land and the people of Viet Nam in the centuries XVII-XVIII made a great contribution to the restoration of the customs and routines of the Vietnamese residents with the unique and distinctive features of a lifestyle in a material culture. Those records have become valuable resources for those who are interested in learning about the Vietnamese culture in general and the material culture of Viet Nam in the XVII - XIX centuries in particular.